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Syria

  1. action item
    How to Help the People of Turkey and SyriaWeeks after two powerful earthquakes killed more than 46,000 people, another one hit Turkey.
    By Bindu Bansinath
  2. what we know
    Death Toll in Turkey and Syria Rises to More Than 11,000: UpdatesThe powerful earthquakes have flattened thousands of buildings in the region, and the death toll continues to mount.
    By Chas Danner and Nia Prater
  3. awful things
    U.S. Covered Up Airstrike That Killed Dozens of Civilians in Syria: ReportMore than 60 civilians, including many women and children, appear to have been killed, according to a new investigation.
    By Paola Rosa-Aquino
  4. international affairs
    U.S. Air Strikes Target Iran-Backed Militias in Syria and IraqThe Pentagon said Biden ordered the strikes in retaliation for recent drone attacks on U.S. personnel by Iran-backed militias.
    By Chas Danner
  5. foreign interests
    What Were the Legal (and Strategic) Grounds for Biden’s Syria Airstrikes?The long-term impact on Biden’s Iran strategy may be more consequential than the strikes’ contested legality.
    By Jonah Shepp
  6. biden administration
    Biden Approves U.S. Airstrikes on Iran-Backed Militias in SyriaThe Pentagon claims the airstrikes were in retaliation for a prior strike on U.S. forces, and were not intended to escalate hostilities with Iran.
    By Matt Stieb
  7. protest
    Scenes from Police Brutality Protests Around the WorldIn cities across the globe, people gathered in solidarity with U.S. protesters demanding an end to racist law enforcement.
    By Hannah Gold
  8. coronavirus
    Coronavirus Is the Last Thing the Middle East Needs Right NowYears of conflict, an intensifying refugee crisis, and often inadequate health systems have left the region especially vulnerable.
    By Jonah Shepp
  9. iran
    If Trump Can’t Bully Iran Into Backing Down, Things Could Get Scary FastTrump hates limited, conventional wars and also thinks intimidating enemies with great shows of force will subdue them. What if it doesn’t this time?
    By Ed Kilgore
  10. syria
    Trump Thinks of Saving ‘Innocent Civilians’ in Syria Only After Removing TroopsTrump warned Russia and Syria to avoid killing “innocent civilians” in Idlib province after negating the U.S.’s ability to do anything about it.
    By Matt Stieb
  11. turkey
    Trump Does Erdogan’s Post-Invasion PR for Him in Joint Press ConferenceTrump buckled to Turkish positions multiple times in the meeting, consistent with his larger habit of giving in to authoritarian leaders in person.
    By Matt Stieb
  12. the national interest
    Trump Boasts of War Crimes in Public, Nobody Believes Him“We’re keeping the oil!” That’s a violation of international law.
    By Jonathan Chait
  13. syria
    President Trump Is Obsessed With Stealing Syria’s OilHe seems far more concerned about plundering the country’s natural resources than about the human misery he unleashed.
    By Benjamin Hart
  14. syria
    What Impulsive Foreign-Policy Move Might Trump Make Next?Intelligencer staffers discuss the implications of President Trump’s Syria debacle.
    By Benjamin Hart and Heather Hurlburt
  15. world view
    Trump Is Letting Turkey Bully the United StatesThe U.S. delegation got to announce a Syria cease-fire, but only after Ankara gave them a taste of the humiliation that weak nations endure regularly.
    By Heather Hurlburt
  16. president trump
    Read President Trump’s Bizarre Letter to Turkey’s President“Don’t be a tough guy. Don’t be a fool!”
    By Benjamin Hart
  17. president trump
    Trump: Kurds Are ‘Not Angels.’ In Fact, They’re ‘Worse at Terror’ Than ISISThe president explains that the forces his own administration allied with against ISIS were actually worse than ISIS all along.
    By Eric Levitz
  18. the national interest
    Trump Is Being Impeached Because He Keeps Doing What Russia WantsTrump’s Ukraine scandal and his Syria fiasco both happen to benefit one country Trump really likes.
    By Jonathan Chait
  19. syria
    Trump Announces Sanctions Against Turkey, Also HimselfTrump’s sanctions against “any persons contributing to Turkey’s destabilizing actions in northeast Syria” appear to apply to himself.
    By Matt Stieb
  20. foreign interests
    Trump Didn’t Free Us From Syria’s ‘Endless War,’ He Just Made It WorseThe president congratulated himself for pulling U.S. forces out of a Mideast quagmire, but his haphazard decision is perpetuating a destructive cycle.
    By Jonah Shepp
  21. syria
    The Trump-Blessed War in Northeastern Syria Is Already a Complete DisasterAmerica’s abandoned Kurdish allies surrendered to Assad and Russia rather than face Turkey and the threat of ethnic cleansing alone.
    By Chas Danner
  22. lindsey graham
    Lindsey Graham Said Syrian Kurds Were ‘Threat’ to Turkey in Prank CallGraham also appeared to assure the fake Turkish official that his party would help an Erdogan ally get off easy for violating U.S. sanctions on Iran.
    By Eric Levitz
  23. president trump
    Trump’s Betrayal of the Kurds May Be the Dumbest Move of His PresidencyHe found one of the few ways to make GOP senators shout, “Donald Trump is misusing executive power,” right as impeachment gets rolling.
    By Eric Levitz
  24. syria
    Why Trump’s Evangelical Allies Are Enraged Over His Betrayal of the KurdsNeocons aren’t the only ones angry at Trump for green-lighting a Turkish invasion. Religious leaders say it could harm Christians in the region.
    By Ed Kilgore
  25. syria
    Turkey: Trump Knew ‘Precisely’ the Scope of Our Attack Plans in SyriaAs Turkish bombs fall on Kurdish border towns, Erdogan’s government insists that Trump green-lit its operation.
    By Eric Levitz
  26. foreign interests
    Trump and Erdogan Are Only Increasing the Odds of an ISIS ComebackTurkey claims its attack on the Kurds, which Trump cleared the way for, is about securing “peace.” It’s likely to do the exact opposite.
    By Jonah Shepp
  27. corruption
    Trump’s (Insane) Conflict of Interest in the Turkey-Syria DisputeTrump collects millions in royalties from a licensing agreement in Istanbul — a deal that an ally of Erdogan could cancel at any time.
    By Eric Levitz
  28. world view
    Trump’s Syria Withdrawal Is a Mistake We’re Doomed to RepeatMilitary and GOP leaders rebuked Trump over December’s abrupt Syria shift, but didn’t go far enough. Their latest complaints won’t rein him in either.
    By Heather Hurlburt
  29. foreign policy
    Trump Defends Syria Policy in Series of Wild, Authoritarian TweetsHe boasted of his “great and unmatched wisdom” and threatened to obliterate Turkey’s economy if the country displeases him.
    By Adam K. Raymond
  30. movie review
    The Horror Is Real in the Syrian Doc For SamaThe film doesn’t feel like raw footage — it has been carefully shaped, with a bit of movie-­ish suspense during the final hours.
    By David Edelstein
  31. interesting times
    Andrew Sullivan: The Nature of SexThere are enormous dangers in trying to legislate away the differences between social constructs and biological realities on the question of gender.
    By Andrew Sullivan
  32. world view
    With Mattis Gone, Trump Is Already Sowing More Global ChaosIn just a few weeks, we’ve seen a serious uptick in odd U.S. foreign policy moves and anonymous leaking, and that isn’t good for anyone except Putin.
    By Heather Hurlburt
  33. world view
    Trump Is Facing a Real Crisis — But It’s in Syria, Not at Our BorderBolton and Pompeo were supposed to clear up confusion over troop withdrawal from Syria. Instead, the U.S. appears to have two contradictory policies.
    By Heather Hurlburt
  34. foreign policy
    Lindsey Graham Adds to Confusion Over Trump’s Plan to Leave Syria“I think we’re slowing things down in a smart way,” Graham said after a meeting with Trump Sunday.
    By Adam K. Raymond
  35. u.s. military
    Trump Makes Surprise Trip to Iraq, One Spot Where He Isn’t Withdrawing TroopsAmid the uproar over his decision to pull troops from Afghanistan and Syria, President Trump made his first appearance in a combat zone.
    By Ed Kilgore
  36. the national circus
    Trump Removes Mattis As Defense Secretary Two Months Ahead of ScheduleTrump rebukes Mattis by tweet for his resignation letter, with deputy Patrick Shanahan to fill in as Acting Defense Secretary on January 1.
    By Matt Stieb
  37. interesting times
    Andrew Sullivan: The Establishment Will Never Say No to a WarKeep that in mind when listening to the many defenders of the shadowy and unconstitutional occupation in Syria and the endless slog in Afghanistan.
    By Andrew Sullivan
  38. politics
    Read Defense Secretary Mattis’s Full Letter to Donald TrumpJames Mattis tendered his resignation today, and wrote a letter to the President explaining his reasons for doing so.
  39. q&a & excerpt
    Ali Fitzgerald on Her New Comic About Refugees and Germany’s Rising NativismThe creator of Hungover Bear turns serious with Drawn to Berlin — plus an excerpt.
    By Evan Allgood
  40. 2020 election
    What Is Tulsi Gabbard Fighting For?The war veteran and Democratic congresswoman is a rising star for progressives. But her views on foreign policy illustrate a dilemma on the left.
    By Eoin Higgins
  41. anonymous op-ed
    Nikki Haley Addresses Anonymous White House Writer, Shows How to Exploit CrisisThe former South Carolina governor is a consummate opportunist in moments of crisis.
    By Ed Kilgore
  42. foreign policy
    After Promising Quick Syria Exit, Trump Is Said to Approve of Indefinite StayA U.S. official claimed Trump is “on board,” but this only bolsters claims that administration officials ignore the president’s orders.
    By Margaret Hartmann
  43. 5 Takeaways and One Surprise From Mike Pompeo’s Congressional TestimonyThe secretary of State appeared before Congress to answer questions for the first time since the NATO and Helsinki summits.
    By Heather Hurlburt
  44. Report: Assad to Meet With Kim Jong-un in North KoreaThe autocrat summit would be Kim’s first with another head of state on his home turf.
    By Benjamin Hart
  45. Report: Trump Bragged to Wealthy Donors About Classified Syria BattleAt a Manhattan fundraiser, Trump bragged about a U.S. assault on Russian mercenaries that he said could have killed as many as 300 people.
    By Adam K. Raymond
  46. foreign policy
    Trump’s Iran-Deal Exit Has Raised the Risk of War, Even Faster Than ExpectedIsrael and Iran are running out of reasons not to escalate their low-key conflict in Syria into a broader regional catastrophe.
    By Jonah Shepp
  47. Israel Targets Iran’s Military in Syria With ‘Unprecedented’ StrikesThe Syrian Foreign Ministry called the strikes “the start of a new phase of aggression” by Israel.
    By Adam K. Raymond
  48. Officials Confirm That Trump Bombed Syria to Validate His TweetsMattis asked Trump to seek congressional approval for the strike. But he wanted to be “seen as backing up a series of bellicose tweets with action.”
    By Eric Levitz
  49. Trump Official: Haley at Fault for Announcing Wrong Russian PolicyIt’s tough when your boss isn’t on the same page as everyone else.
    By Benjamin Hart
  50. foreign policy
    Syria Strikes Show, Once Again, That We Can’t Police the World by Bombing ItFriday’s missile attack will join a growing list of failed attempts by the U.S. to conduct foreign policy from the air.
    By Jonah Shepp
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